Britain slips down Corruption Perception Index

Britain has received it's lowest ever position on the Corruption Perception Index, coming 20th out of 178, while Singapore, New Zealand and Denmark top the list.

Conducted by Transparency International the Corruption Perception Index rates the perceived levels of corruption thought to be prevalent amongst the countries politicians and public officials. The list is then assessed by institutions the likes of the World Economic Forum, World Bank and Economist Intelligence Unit.

Countries are marked on a 0-10 scale, 10 meaning low corruption and 0 meaning high corruption. The three joint leaders, Singapore, New Zealand and Denmark, each scored 9.3 giving them joint first place, Finland and Sweden scored 9.2 for a joint second place.

The United Kingdom's score of 7.2 is its lowest ever, and recent scandals such as the MP expenses fiasco are though to be behind its descent.

Transparency International UK's executive director, Chandrashekhar Krishnan, said: This is the leading global index of corruption, and the UK is now seriously at risk of dropping out of the top 20. Yet it should be aspiring to be within the top ten. How else can the UK’s calls for better governance in developing countries be taken seriously. It is also a reminder that the MPs’ expenses scandal has had a bigger and longer-lasting impact on domestic and international opinion than politicians had hoped. What matters now is for Parliament to embrace a new culture of transparency and accountability – in addition to the new rules on MPs’ expenses.”